System and method for oilfield management

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to an oilfield management system. The oilfield management system comprises: one or more devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells, the one or more devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells are installed on one or more oil wells respectively for measuring working conditions of the one or more oil wells, the working conditions of oil wells at least comprise indicator diagrams of oil wells; one or more remote transmission units, each of the remote transmission units receives the working conditions measured by one or more of the devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells; and server, which determines running status of the one or more oil wells according to the working conditions of oil wells from the one or more remote transmission units; maintenance staff or administrators manage the one or more oil wells according to the running status of the one or more oil wells. The present invention can collect indicator diagrams of an oil well on a regular basis, detect ON/OFF status of an oil well in real time, and realize the calculation of liquid production capacity via indicator diagrams and efficient and elaborate management of working conditions of oil wells.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation Application of U.S. Ser. No.16/395,278, filed Apr. 26, 2019, which is a Continuation of U.S. Ser.No. 14/559,231, filed on Dec. 3, 2014, U.S. Pat. No. 10,316,651, issuedJun. 11, 2019, which claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of ChineseApplication No. 2014100583452, filed on Feb. 20, 2014. The disclosuresof both applications are hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to the field of crude oil extraction, andin particular to a system and method for oilfield management.

BACKGROUND ART

Currently, petroleum remains the most important resource. Many oilreservoirs have complicated geologic conditions and thus are verydifficult to exploit. It is also very difficult to manage thoseoilfields. In particular, when it comes to the middle to late stage ofits exploitation, conflict between its production and management costbecomes increasingly notable. In order to ensure stable production ofoil wells, it is often required that workers go to the field on aregular basis to inspect and maintain oil wells, which causes shortagein staff on the production field and increases production costs of theoilfield. Especially when emergencies happen to some oil wells, theexisting way of oilfield management can not spot those emergencies in atimely manner, which might have adverse effect on the productionefficiency and waste resources. Therefore, there is a need in the artfor an oilfield management system capable of realizing effectivemanagement of oilfields.

BRIEF SUMMARY

For problems existing in prior art, the present invention provides anoilfield management system, wherein the oilfield management systemcomprises: one or more devices for measuring working conditions of oilwells, the one or more devices for measuring working conditions of oilwells are mounted on one or more oil wells respectively for measuringworking conditions of oil wells, the working conditions of oil wells atleast comprise indicator diagrams of an oil well; one or more remotetransmission units, each of the remote transmission units receives theworking conditions of oil wells measured by one or more of the devicesfor measuring working conditions of oil wells; and server, whichdetermines running status of the one or more oil wells according to theworking conditions of oil wells from the one or more remote transmissionunits, and maintenance staff or administrators manage the one or moreoil wells according to the running status of the one or more oil wells.

The oilfield management system as described above, wherein the one ormore devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells detect ON/OFFstatus of oil wells, and transmit the measured ON/OFF body to a remotetransmission unit.

The oilfield management system as described above, wherein the remotetransmission unit comprises: first wireless transmission module, whichcommunicates with the one or more devices for measuring workingconditions of oil wells; wherein the remote transmission unit transmitsthe working conditions of oil wells received from the one or moredevices for measuring working conditions of oil wells to maintenancestaff or administrators via wired or wireless means.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinthe oilfield management system further comprises wireless base station,and the remote transmission unit further comprises second wirelesstransmission module, the remote transmission unit communicates with thewireless base station via the second wireless transmission module andtransmits the working conditions of oil wells to the wireless basestation, the wireless base station transmits the working conditions ofoil wells received from the one or more remote transmission units to theserver, maintenance staff or administrators via wired or wireless means.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinthe server determines running status of the one or more oil wellsaccording to historical indicator diagrams and/or standard indicatordiagrams of the one or more oil wells, and produces corresponding alarmand/or maintenance suggestion.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinthe server further elevates the alarm level and/or informsadministrators when the alarm and/or maintenance suggestion are nothandled in a timely manner.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinthe server predicts components where malfunction might occur on some oilwell within the one or more oil wells and predicts the time when themalfunction occurs; or the server determines possible causes of themalfunction on some oil well within the one or more oil wells, anddetermines the time when the malfunction occurs.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above furthercomprise one or more remote control units, the one or more remotecontrol units are mounted on the one or more oil wells, the remotecontrol unit comprises third wireless communication module and controlmodule, the third wireless communication module receives admin commandfrom the server or administrators; the control module executes the admincommand.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinthe device for measuring working conditions of oil wells comprisesdevice for collecting indicator diagrams of oil wells and signaltransmitter, wherein, the device for collecting indicator diagrams ofoil wells comprises: displacement collection unit, which collectsdisplacement data; load collection unit, which collect load data; fourthwireless transmission module which communicates with the remotetransmission unit; and fifth wireless transmission module, whichcommunicates with the signal transmitter, wherein the signal transmittercomprises: position detection module, which detects the startingposition and/or ending position in each period of indicator diagrams;and sixth wireless transmission module, which transmits signals to thedevice for collecting indicator diagrams of oil wells according to thestarting position and/or ending position in each period of indicatordiagrams detected by the position detection module.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinthe position detection module comprises Hall sensor.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above, whereinfor walking beam type pumping unit, the position detection module or theHall sensor is mounted on the bottom of the walking beam to detect themagnet mounted on the walking beam.

The one or more oil field management system as described above, whereinfor vertical pumping unit, the position detection module or the Hallsensor is mounted on the support to detect the magnet mounted on thebelt.

The one or more oilfield management system as described above furthercomprises portable oil well maintenance device, which comprises: seventhwireless module, which communicates with the device for measuringindicator diagrams of oil wells and/or the signal transmitter; andcalibration module which calibrates the device for measuring indicatordiagrams of oil wells and/or the signal transmitter.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is providedan oilfield management method, the oilfield comprises one or more oilwells, one or more devices for measuring working conditions of oil wellsmounted on the one or more oil wells respectively, the method comprisesthe following steps: measuring working conditions of the one or more oilwells, the working conditions of oil wells at least comprise indicatordiagrams of oil wells; receiving the measured one or more workingconditions of oil wells via wireless means and forwarding the same tothe server; determining running status of the one or more oil wellsaccording to the working conditions of oil wells from the one or moreremote transmission units; and maintenance staff or administratorsmanage the one or more oil wells according to the running status of theone or more oil wells.

The oilfield management method as described above further comprises:transmitting the received working conditions of oil wells to maintenancestaff or administrators via wired or wireless means.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises: detecting ON/OFF status of oil wells, and transmitting thedetected ON/OFF body to remote transmission unit.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises: transmitting the received working conditions of oil wells towireless base station; and the wireless base station transmits theworking conditions of oil wells to server, maintenance staff oradministrators via wired or wireless means.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises determining running status of the one or more oil wellsaccording to historical indicator diagrams and/or standard indicatordiagrams of the one or more oil wells and producing corresponding alarmand/or maintenance suggestions.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises elevating the alarm level and/or informing administrators whenthe alarm and/or maintenance suggestion are not handled in a timelymanner.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises predicting components where malfunction might occur on someoil well within the one or more oil wells, and predicting the time whenthe malfunction occurs; or determining possible causes for themalfunction on some oil well within the one or more oil wells, anddetermining the time when the malfunction occurs.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises executing admin command from the server or administrators.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above, whereinthe measurement of working conditions of the one or more oil wellscomprises the measurement of indicator diagrams of the one or more oilwells, which further comprises: detecting the starting position and/orending position in each period of indicator diagrams, and sendingsignals; starting the measurement of indicator diagrams of oil wellsaccording to the signals; and collecting displacement data and loaddata.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above, whereindetecting the starting position and/or ending position in each period ofindicator diagrams based on Hall sensor.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above, whereinfor walking beam type pumping unit, the Hall sensor is mounted on thebottom of the walking beam to detect the magnet mounted on the walkingbeam.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above, whereinfor vertical pumping unit, the Hall sensor is mounted on the support todetect the magnet mounted on the belt.

The one or more oilfield management method as described above furthercomprises calibrating the device for measuring indicator diagrams of oilwells and/or device for sending the signals by using portable oil wellmaintenance device via wireless means.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is providedan oilfield management system, comprising: one or more devices formeasuring indicator diagrams of oil wells, which are mounted betweenwireline hanger and square clamp of one or more oil wells respectively;one or more signal transmitters, which are mounted on the one or moreoil wells respectively; one or more remote transmission units, each ofthe remote transmission units receives the indicator diagrams of oilwells measured by one or more of the devices for measuring indicatordiagrams of oil wells; and server, which determines running status ofthe one or more oil wells according to the indicator diagrams of oilwells received by the one or more remote transmission units; whereinresponding to the starting position and/ending position of each periodof indicator diagrams, the one or more signal transmitters transmitsignals to the corresponding devices for measuring indicator diagrams ofoil wells, the corresponding devices for measuring indicator diagrams ofoil wells start the measurement of indicator diagrams of oil wells.

The present invention may collect indicator diagrams of oil wells on aregular basis, detect ON/OFF status of oil wells in real time, andrealize the calculation of liquid production capacity via indicatordiagrams and efficient and elaborate management of working conditions ofoil wells.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The following is a further detailed description of the preferredembodiments of the present invention, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a structural schematic illustrating an oilfield managementsystem according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating an oilfield management methodaccording to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustrating a device for measuring workingconditions of oil wells according to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a structural schematic illustrating a device for collectingindicator diagrams of oil wells according to one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is a structural schematic illustrating a signal transmitteraccording to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6A is a structural schematic illustrating a signal transmitterbased on Hall sensor according to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6B is a structural schematic illustrating the main body of a signaltransmitter base on Hall sensor according to one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 7A is a circuit schematic illustrating the Hall sensor part of aposition detection module based on Hall sensor according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7B is a circuit schematic illustrating the Hall sensor part of aposition detection module based on Hall sensor according to anotherembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic illustrating the use of a device for measuringworking conditions of oil wells in walking beam type pumping unitaccording to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustrating the use of a device for measuringworking conditions of oil wells in vertical pumping unit according toone embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating the method for measuring indicatordiagrams of oil wells according to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustrating the use of a portable oil wellmaintenance device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a structural schematic illustrating a portal oil wellmaintenance device according to one embodiment of the present invention;and

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustrating the panel of a portable oil wellmaintenance device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

EMBODIMENTS

In order to give a clearer picture of the purposes, technical solutionsand advantages of the embodiments of the present invention, thefollowing is an explicit and comprehensive description of the technicalsolutions in the embodiments of the present invention, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in embodiments of the presentinvention. Apparently, the described embodiments are a part of theembodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. On thebasis of the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodimentsachieved by persons skilled in the art without paying any creativeeffort shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part of the present application andare used to illustrate particular embodiments of the presentapplication. In the drawings, similar symbols in different drawingsrefer to substantially similar components. Each particular embodiment ofthe present application is sufficiently described below such thatordinary people having related knowledge and technology in the art areable to implement the technical solutions of the present application. Itshould be understood that other embodiments can be used or changes canbe made to the structure, logical or electrical property of theembodiments of the present application.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is providedan oilfield management system. Through the oilfield management systemand other assisting devices, accurate measurement of indicator diagramsof an individual well, remote transmission of the indicator diagrams,calculation of liquid production capacity based on the indicatordiagrams and analysis in real time, and producing alarm in real time andmonitoring the settlement of alarm are possibly achieved, as anelaborate management of the oil fields.

FIG. 1 is a structural schematic illustrating an oilfield managementsystem according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown inFIG. 1, the oilfield management system 100 comprises devices formeasuring working conditions of oil wells. Devices 101-105 for measuringworking conditions of oil wells are installed on the one or more oilwells 111-115 respectively. The device for measuring working conditionsof oil wells measures one or more parameters reflecting the workingconditions of oil wells, such as indicator diagrams, temperature,pressure and so on. Fluid production capacity of oil wells can becalculated via indicator diagrams, and the device for measuring workingconditions of oil wells can obtain data of oil well metering device.Production of oil wells can further be calculated through the dataobtained by metering device.

Devices for measuring indicator diagrams and/or other devices formeasuring parameters of oil wells existing in the prior art can beexamples of the devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells.According to one embodiment of the present invention, device formeasuring working conditions of oil wells at least measures theindicator diagrams of oil wells. The frequency at which the device formeasuring working conditions of oil wells measures indicator diagrams is4 times a day, 8 times a day, 16 times a day, 24 times a day, or 48times a day, or even more times a day.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the oilfieldmanagement system 100 comprises one or more remote transmission units(RTU). The one or more RTU can be mounted on or near one or more oilwells. The device for measuring working conditions of oil wellscomprises wireless transmission module so as to communicate with RTU.Likewise, RTU also comprises wireless transmission module so as tocommunicate with device for measuring working conditions of oil wells.According to one embodiment of the present invention, one RTU cansupport multiple devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells.As shown in FIG. 1, the devices 101 and 102 for measuring workingconditions of oil wells mounted on oil wells 111 and 112 respectivelycommunicate with RTU121; the device 103 for measuring working conditionsof oil wells mounted on oil well 113 communicates with RTU122; thedevices 104 and 105 for measuring working conditions of oil wellsmounted on oil wells 114 and 115 communicate with RTU123. Device formeasuring working conditions of oil wells communicates with RTU inaccordance with any feasible remote communication protocol, such asZigbee, Z-Wave, ANT, Enocean and the like.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, each of devices101-105 for measuring working conditions of oil wells support wirelessself-organizing protocol, such as Ad-hoc protocol. Each of the devicesfor measuring working conditions of oil wells can communicate with eachother to form a network, wherein each of the devices for measuringworking conditions of oil wells in communication with other devices formeasuring working conditions of oil wells can be regarded as a RTU.Therefore, it still falls within the scope of the claims of the presentinvention.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, oilfieldmanagement system 100 may comprises a wireless base station. RTUcomprises at least two wireless transmission modules, wherein a firstwireless transmission module communicates with device for measuringworking conditions of oil wells; while a second wireless transmissionmodule communicates with the wireless base station. As shown in FIG. 1,RTU 121-123 communicate with the wireless base station 131. According toone embodiment of the present invention, the wireless base station maybe a specific base station specifically configured for oilfieldmanagement system, and may also be base stations used for publiccommunication or other purposes. RTU communicates with the wireless basestation in accordance the protocol that the wireless base stationsupports, such as GSM, GPRS, CDMA2000, LTE and the like. According toone embodiment of the present invention, the wireless base station isoptional. Each RTU can be directly connected to maintenance staff, aserver, an administrator or internet without through a wireless basestation. The addition of the wireless base station largely expands thescope of oilfield management system and reduces costs for networking.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG.1, the wireless base station 131 is connected to maintenance staff 141,server 142, administrator 143 or internet 144 via wired or wirelessmeans. Meanwhile, the wireless base station 131 may also be connected toadministrator 151 through internet 144 and thus realizing thetransmission of administration information and the delivery ofadministration command.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the device formeasuring working conditions of oil wells transmits indicator diagramsof oil wells to a server via RTU (and wireless base station). The serverstores indicator diagrams of each oil well at different time.Maintenance staff or administrators can view the indicator diagrams ofeach oil well in the server directly or via the internet. According tothe indicator diagrams of each oil well, one can determine whether theworking status of an oil well is normal, and further obtain liquidproduction capacity, the maximum and minimum load and other parametersof other working conditions. Further, the server may determines thecurrent working condition of each oil well according to historical dataof indicator diagrams of each oil well or standard indicator diagram ofeach oil well. If emergency happens to a certain oil well, the serverproduces an alarm and transmits the alarm to the server, maintenancestaff or administrators. Further, the server may monitor whether thealarm is handled in timely manner. If the alarm is not handled, forexample in one day or two, the server may further elevate the alarmlevel and inform the administrator via other means (e.g., SMS or phone),or transmits the alarm to other administrators (e.g. a higher level).

Further, if working condition of an oil well changes according to theindicator diagrams of the oil well, but it does not meet the requirementfor producing an alarm, the server can produce suggestion for adjustingworking condition of the oil well according to changes of the indicatordiagrams of the oil well, and set different levels according todifferent suggestions. Similarly, the server may also monitor whetherthe suggestion is handled in a timely manner.

Even further, according to changes of indicator diagrams of an oil well,the server may predict which components of the oil well are in adeteriorated stage and might malfunction, and further predict the timewhen the malfunction occurs. According to those predictions, the servermay produce suggestion for changing components of the oil well.Administrators can prepare the components for the replacement inadvance, and replace components under poor conditions in the premise ofreasonable arrangement of work, prevent occurrence of malfunction andreduce stop time of oil wells.

Even further, a remote control unit is mounted on an oil well. Theremote control unit comprises wireless communication module and controlmodule (e.g. one or more relays). Through the wireless communicationmodule, the remote control unit communicates with the server via RTU(and wireless base station). The remote control unit receives admincommand from the server or administrators via the wireless communicationmodule, and operate control module according to the admin command andthus realizing remote control of operations of oil wells, such as thecontrol of ON and OFF of an oil well, control of stroke times, controlof the use of standby equipment and the like. According to oneembodiment of the present invention, the device for measuring workingconditions of an oil well can also receive admin command from the serveror the administrators, and finish the setting of its own parameters, ormeasurement of working conditions according to the admin command.

It should be understood by persons skilled in the art that although onlyfive oil wells 101-105 and three corresponding remote transmission unitsRTU111-113 are shown in FIG. 1, the number of oil wells underadministration in the embodiments of the present invention is notlimited to 3, and it can be 1, 2, 3 to dozens. According to oneembodiment of the present invention, one RTU may manage 5 to 12 oilwells, and one wireless base station may support several to thousands ofRTU or even more. The number is only limited to the maximum number thatthe communication protocol it adopts is capable of supporting.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating the method for oilfield managementaccording to one embodiment of the present invention. The methodillustrated in FIG. 2 can be applied in the oilfield management systemas shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the method for oilfieldmanagement 200 comprises that in step 210 one or more oil wells transmitworking conditions information of oil wells including the indicatordiagrams. According to one embodiment of the present invention, oilwells are provided with devices for measuring working conditions of oilwells. The devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells can beused for measuring indicator diagrams of oil wells, and transmitting theindicator diagrams via wireless means. There already exits in the priorart devices mounted on oil wells for measuring indicator diagrams of oilwells. The devices for measuring working conditions of oil wells maycomprise such devices to measuring indicator diagrams of oil wells.Further, the device for measuring working conditions of an oil well maycomprise wireless module used for transmitting working conditionsinformation including indicator diagrams via wireless means. Further,working conditions information may also comprise temperature, pressureand other parameters of oil wells.

In step 220, RTU receives working conditions information from one ormore oil wells, and transmits the working conditions information fromone or more oil wells to server. In step 230, the server determinesworking conditions of oil wells according to a historical or a standardindicator diagram of oil wells. In step 240, the server sends alarm orproduces maintenance suggestion according to the working conditions ofoil wells. In step 250, the server further monitors whether the alarm ormaintenance suggestion is handled in a timely manner.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the indicatordiagram of a certain oil well suddenly changes from a shape similar toparallelogram to a flat shape and its area becomes very small. Theserver determines that “break-out” of sucker rod happens to the oilwell, and sends out alarm immediately. Administrators spot themalfunction where sucker rod “breaks out” at the very first time throughthe alarm in the server and finish the replacement of sucker rod.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the area ofthe indicator diagram of a certain oil well suddenly becomes small. Theserver can not determine the specific malfunction occurring to the oilwell, but sends out alarm of “suddenly change in area of indicatordiagram”. The administrators immediately go out for maintenance and spot“wax deposition pump leakage” on site. The administrators perform “wellwashing” in a timely manner and restore the working of the oil well.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the indicatordiagram of a certain oil well within a period of time has fine strips onthe right side and the area of the entire indicator diagram is small.The server determines according to the indicator diagram that oil supplymight be insufficient. The server produces a maintenance suggestion foradjusting stroke times. The administrators remotely send out admincommand for adjusting stroke times to remote control unit mounted on theoil well. The remote control unit changes the stroke times of the oilwell. After several times of adjusting stroke times, the indicatordiagram is found not to have any obvious changes. The administrators seta lower value of stroke times of the oil well via the remote controlunit to reduce energy consumption.

Through the above embodiment, one can see that the transmission ofindicator diagram of each oil well through RTU via wireless means to theserver can realize centralized monitoring and maintenance of workingconditions of oil wells and thus achieving effect management ofoilfield.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustrating device for measuring workingconditions of an oil well according to one embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 3, the device for measuring workingconditions of an oil field 300 comprises device 301 for collectingindicator diagrams of oil wells and signal transmitter 302.

FIG. 4 is a structural schematic illustrating a device for collectingindicator diagrams of oil wells according to one embodiment of thepresent invention. According to one embodiment of the present invention,the device 400 for collecting indicator diagrams of oil wells comprises:a data processing unit 401, a displacement collection unit 402, a loadcollection unit 403, a third wireless transmission module 404 and afourth wireless transmission module 405. Wherein, the displacementcollection 402 is connected to the date processing unit 401 to collectdisplacement data. The load collection unit 403 is connected to the dataprocessing unit 401. The third wireless transmission module 404 isconnected to the data processing unit 401. The third wirelesstransmission module 404 communicates with RTU or Data Relay Station(DRS) to transmit working conditions data including indicator diagramsor receive admin command from RTU or DRS. The fourth wirelesstransmission module 405 is connected to the data processing unit 401.The fourth wireless transmission module 405 communicates with the signaltransmitter for receiving signal of the starting position from thesignal transmitter. According to one embodiment of the presentinvention, the first and second wireless transmission modules can be thesame module using the same communication protocol. As shown in FIG. 4,the device for measuring working conditions of an oil well furthercomprises battery 406 and storage unit 407. One example of the dataprocessing unit 401 is single-chip microcomputer.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the device forcollecting indicator diagrams of an oil well is mounted between thewireline hanger and the square clamp of an oil well. It should beunderstood by persons skilled in the art that the device for collectingindicator diagrams of an oil well may also be mounted at other positionsof an oil well that can realize the measurement of indicator diagrams.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the displacementcollection unit 402 comprises Hall sensor circuit board and displacementline. Wherein, the Hall sensor circuit board and displacement line aremounted in a displacement mechanism. According to characteristics ofHall electric components, when a displacement line is dragged out, thedata processing unit can precisely calculate the lengthen of thedisplacement line dragged out through the detection function of Hallcomponents in the Hall sensor electric circuit board. When thedisplacement line draws back, the data processing unit can preciselycalculate the length of the displacement line drawn back according tothe detection function of Hall components in the Hall sensor electriccircuit board. Through the high sensitivity of the Hall electriccomponents, the accuracy of the measurement of displacement can beimproved.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the loadcollection unit 403 comprises resistive bridge and operationalamplifier. Wherein, the resistive bridge is connected to strain materialto monitor changes of load. The strain material can change itselectronic resistance in response to different loads applied to thestrain material. And, the changes of load can be then transformed intochange of voltage via the resistive bridge. The input end of theoperational amplifier is connected to the resistive bridge to amplifythe voltage value transformed by the resistive bridge. The dataprocessing unit is connected to the output end of the operationalamplifier to calculate the load value of an oil well. This is an exampleof measurement of the load. Other existing method for collecting theloads can also be used in the load collection unit 403 as indicated inthe above.

Another important aspect of the measurement of indicator diagrams is todetermine the position of the starting point. If the position of thestarting point is correct, the indicator diagrams resulting from themeasurement may precisely reflect working status of an oil well.However, it is difficult to determine the starting point of each strokeat the position where the device for collecting indicator diagrams of anoil well is mounted. Therefore, the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4chooses to receive starting and/ending signals from an outside signaltransmitter, and then determine position of the starting point of anindicator diagram. When each stroke starts and/or ends, the fourthwireless transmission module 405 receives signals from the signaltransmitter, and forwards the same to the data processing unit 401. Thedata processing unit 401 controls the displacement collection unit 402and the load collection unit 403 to start the measurement of indicatordiagrams. The data processing unit 401 stores the measured indicatordiagrams in the storage unit 407 or transmits the indicator diagramsoutward to RTU, DRS, server, maintenance staff or administrators via thethird wireless transmission module 404.

FIG. 5 is a structural schematic illustrating a signal transmitteraccording to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG.5, signal transmitter 500 comprises sixth wireless transmission module501 and position detection module 502. The position detection module 502detects starting position and/or ending position in each period, andtransmits the information to the data processing unit 504. Under thecontrol of the data processing unit 504, the sixth wireless transmissionmodule 501 transmits the signals of starting position and/or endingposition in each period to the device for collecting indicator diagramsof an oil well via wireless means. Signal transmitter 500 comprisesbattery 503. Alternatively, the signal transmitter 500 comprises dataprocessing unit 504. The data processing unit 504 is connected to thesixth wireless transmission module 501 and the position detection module502 to receive signals from the position detection module 502 andcontrol the wireless transmission module 501 to transmit signals ofstarting position and/or ending position in each period to device forcollecting indicator diagrams of an oil well via wireless means.According to one embodiment of the present invention, the positiondetection module 502 may detect starting position and ending position ofeach period in different manners according to different pumping units.For example, for walking beam type pumping unit, the position detectionmodule may detect angle of the walking beam or measure distance from thewalking beam to the beam base by using micro switch.

However, although a variety of measurement methods exist, the inventorsurprisingly found that the position detection module based on Hallsensor has excellent performance in adapting to complicated environmentand maintenance. The maintenance period of the position detection modulebased on Hall sensor is ten times to dozens of times of the maintenanceperiod in other ways.

FIG. 6A is s structural schematic illustrating a signal transmitterbased on Hall sensor according to one embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 6A, the signal transmitter 600 comprises amain body part 601 and a Hall sensor part 602. The above two parts areconnected via power line 603 and signal line 604. FIG. 6B is astructural schematic illustrating the main body part of a signaltransmitter based on the Hall sensor according to one embodiment of thepresent invention. As shown in FIG. 6B, the main body part 601 comprisesa wireless module 6011 and a data processing unit 6012.

FIG. 7A is a circuit schematic illustrating the Hall sensor part of aposition detection module based on Hall sensor according to oneembodiment of the present invention. Persons skilled in the art shouldunderstand that the circuit illustrated in FIG. 7 is only forillustration purpose, and not to limit the structure of the Hall sensorpart. Hall sensors with other circuit structures are also feasible inthis embodiment. The Hall sensor part 700 comprises a Hall plate 701.The Hall plate 701 is connected along two sides of Y axis to two ends ofpower supply voltage respectively; while the Hall plate is connected asoutput to the input of amplifier 702 along two ends of X axis. Output ofthe amplifier 702 forms a square wave after reshaped by shaping circuit703 and is output via OC output end. The Hall sensor part 700 alsocomprises a voltage stabilizing circuit 704, which is connected to twoends of the power supply voltage to ensure stability of output voltageand thus ensuring accuracy of measurement result. One example of theshaping circuit 703 is Schmitt trigger. As such, when the magnetic fieldis closed at the direction of Z axis of Hall plate and the fieldintensity reaches a certain threshold, a pulse is formed on theamplifier. It changes to an output signal of square wave after beingamplified by the amplifier and again reshaped by the shaping circuit.

FIG. 7B is a circuit schematic of the Hall sensor part of a positiondetection module based on Hall sensor according to another embodiment ofthe present invention. This circuit diagram is a circuit schematic ofthe micro-power Hall switch IC A3212 of American Allegro MircoSystemCorporation. It is very convenient to construct the Hall sensor of thepresent invention based on the A3212 chip.

FIG. 8 is a schematic illustrating the application of device formeasuring working conditions of an oil well according to one embodimentof the present invention in the walking beam type pumping unit. As shownin FIG. 8, the device 800 for measuring working conditions of an oilwell comprises a device 801 for collecting indicator diagrams of an oilwell, which is mounted between the wireline hanger and the square clamp;and a signal transmitter 802, which is mounted on the bottom of thewalking beam (or the Hall sensor part of the signal transmitter 802 ismounted on the bottom of the walking beam). A magnet 803, for examplepermanent magnet, corresponding to the Hall sensor par of the signaltransmitter is provided on the walking beam of the oil well. When thewalking beam swings, the magnet 803 closes to or moves away from theHall sensor part of the signal transmitter. And when the walking beam isat its lowest point, the Hall sensor part of the signal transmitter isconfigured to be triggered to send out a signal. The wireless part ofthe signal transmitter 802 receives the signal from the Hall sensor partand transmits the signal to the device for collecting indicator diagramsof an oil well via a wireless link, and initiates the measurement ofindicator diagrams of the oil well. After finishing the measurement ofindicator diagrams, the device 801 for collecting indicator diagrams ofan oil well stores the indicator diagrams, and transmits the same tonearby RTU or DRS 804, and thus realizing the measurement andtransmission of indicator diagrams of an oil well.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustrating the use of a device for measuringworking conditions of an oil well according to one embodiment of thepresent invention in the vertical pumping unit. As shown in FIG. 9, thedevice 900 for measuring working conditions of an oil well comprises adevice 901 for collecting indicator diagrams of an oil well, which ismounted between the wireline hanger and the square clamp; and a signaltransmitter 902, which is mounted on the side of the support close tothe belt (or the Hall sensor part of the signal transmitter 902 mountedon the side of the support close to the belt). A magnet 903, for examplea permanent magnet, corresponding to the Hall sensor part of the signaltransmitter is mounted on the belt of the oil well. When the belt movesup and down, the magnet 903 closes to or moves away from the Hall sensorpart of the signal transmitter. And when the distance between the magnetand the Hall sensor is less than a predefine threshold, the Hall sensorpart of the signal transmitter is configured to be triggered to send outa signal. The wireless part of the signal transmitter 902 receives thesignal from the Hall sensor part and then transmits the signal to thedevice 901 for collecting indicator diagrams of an oil well via awireless link to initiate the measurement of indicator diagrams of theoil well by the device 901 for collecting indicator diagrams of an oilwell. After finishing the measurement of the indicator diagrams, thedevice 901 for collecting indicator diagrams of an oil well stores theindicator diagrams and transmits the same to nearby RTU or DRS904 andthus realizing the measurement and transmission of indicator diagrams ofan oil well.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating the method for measuring indicatordiagrams of an oil well according to one embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in 10, the method 1000 for measuring indicatordiagrams of an oil well comprises: in step 1010, the device forcollecting indicator diagrams of an oil well is waken up at a presettime or an administration command. The device for collecting indicatordiagrams of an oil well is usually in a dormant state so as to savepower. In step 1020, the Hall sensor part of the signal transmitterdetects the approaches of the magnet, and triggers the signalsindicating the starting and/or ending position of indicator diagrams. Instep 1030, the device for collecting indicator diagrams of an oil wellmeasures the indicator diagrams of the oil well. In step 1040, thedevice for collecting indicator diagrams of an oil well stores themeasured indicator diagrams and transmits the same to nearby RTU or DRS,and thus realizing the measurement and transmission of indicatordiagrams of an oil well. In step 1050, the device for collectingindicator diagrams of an oil well enters a dormant state.

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustrating the application of a portable oilwell maintenance device according to one embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 11, the oilfield management system of thepresent invention also comprises one or more portable oil wellmaintenance devices 1100 which are distributed to the maintenance staffto help them to maintain oil wells or devices for measuring workingconditions of oil wells on site.

FIG. 12 is a structural schematic illustrating a portable oil wellmaintenance device according to one embodiment of the present invention.The portable oil well maintenance device comprises: a microprocessor1201, a liquid crystal display 1202, a storage module 1203, a seventhwireless module 1204, a keyboard 1205 and a battery 1206. The liquidcrystal display 1202 is connected to the microprocessor 1201 fordisplaying indicator diagrams or finishing corresponding functions; thestorage muddle 1203 is connected to the microprocessor 1201 for storingindicator diagrams and corresponding programs and functional data. Theseventh wireless module 1204 is connected to the microprocessor 1201 andis capable of communicating with device for measuring indicator diagramsof an oil well and/or signal transmitter to receive indicator diagramsand corresponding settings of the above two and transmit signals forinitiating measurement of indicator diagrams and the like. Keyboard 1205is connected to the microprocessor 1201 for finishing related input.Battery 1206 supplies power to the entire apparatus. Further, theportable oil well maintenance device also comprises USD communicationmodule 1207, which is connected to the microprocessor 1201 forfacilitating communication with computer.

The portable oil well maintenance device is compact in structure, easyto operate, large in storage, reliable in working, and is capable ofprecisely collecting indicator diagrams of an oil well and liquid levelinformation and transmitting the same to the server, the computer and soon, which make operational staff capable of back playing and printingdata on computer.

FIG. 13 is a panel schematic illustrating a portable oil wellmaintenance device according to one embodiment of the present invention.In combination with FIG. 11-FIG. 13, the method for operating theportable oil well maintenance device comprises: first, communicatebetween the portable oil well maintenance device and the device formeasuring indicator diagrams of an oil well and wake up or initiate thedevice for measuring indicator diagrams of an oil well; second, measureindicator diagrams of displacement and load of an oil well in real time;or download, store, or view the indicator diagrams stored in the devicefor measuring indicator diagrams of an oil well; third, analyze ordetermine working status of an oil well according to the indicatordiagrams of an oil well, for example calculating area of the indicatordiagrams, calculating power of polish rod and the like; and fourth,maintain oil wells on site according to working status of oil wells.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the portable oilwell maintenance device may also view status of the sensors ondisplacement and load collection modules.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the portable oilwell maintenance device further comprises a calibration module forcalibrating the displacement and load collection modules in the devicefor measuring indicator diagrams of an oil well. It is because that thezero point of the displacement and load collection modules might shiftafter a certain period of time. The recalibrating of the zero point canbe performed by the portable oil well maintenance device. According toone embodiment of the present invention, the calibration module may alsobe a calibration program running on the microprocessor. Throughexecution of the calibration program, the calibration of correspondingsensors on the displacement and load collection modules can be finished.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the portable oilwell maintenance device may also calibrate pressure sensor and the like,or change settings of corresponding sensors, pressure sensors and thelike on the displacement and load collection devices.

The above embodiments are only used for illustrating the presentinvention, and not to limit the present invention. Ordinary personsskilled in the related art can make various changes and modificationswithout departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore,all equivalent technical solutions shall also belong to the disclosureof the present invention.

We claim:
 1. An oilfield management system, comprising: one or moredevices, wherein the one or more devices are installed on one or moreoil wells respectively for measuring working conditions of the one ormore oil wells, and the working conditions at least comprise indicatordiagram of the one or more oil wells; one or more remote transmissionunits, wherein at least one remote transmission unit receives theworking conditions of the one or more oil wells from the one or moredevices; a wireless base station; and a server, wherein the serverdetermines status of the one or more oil wells according to the workingconditions of the one or more oil wells received from the one or moreremote transmission units, and the one or more oil wells are managedaccording to the status of the one or more oil wells; wherein thewireless base station transmits the working conditions received from theone or more remote transmission units to the server via wired orwireless means, each of the one or more remote transmission unitscomprises a first wireless transmission module and a second wirelesstransmission module, wherein the first wireless transmission modulecommunicates with the one or more devices for measuring workingcondition of the oil well, and each of the one or more remotetransmission units communicates with the wireless base station via thesecond wireless transmission module, and transmits the workingconditions to the wireless base station.
 2. The oilfield managementsystem according to claim 1, wherein the one or more devicesrespectively detect ON/OFF status of the one or more oil wells, andtransmit the detected ON/OFF status to the one or more remotetransmission units.
 3. The oilfield management system according to claim1, wherein the server determines the status of the one or more oil wellsbased on comparison from historical indicator diagrams and/or standardindicator diagrams of the one or more oil wells, and produces an alarmand maintenance suggestion.
 4. The oilfield management system accordingto claim 3, wherein the server further elevates alarm level and/orinforms administrators when the alarm and/or maintenance suggestion arenot handled in a timely manner.
 5. The oilfield management systemaccording to claim 3, wherein the server predicts a component wheremalfunction might occur in an oil well within the one or more oil wells,and predicts when the malfunction occurs; or the server determines apossible cause of the malfunction in an oil well within the one or moreoil wells, and determines when the malfunction occurs.
 6. The oilfieldmanagement system according to claim 1, further comprising one or moreremote control units which are installed on the one or more oil wells,wherein each of the one or more remote control units comprises a thirdwireless communication module and a control module, the third wirelesscommunication module receives an administration command, and the controlmodule executes the administration command.
 7. The oilfield managementsystem according to claim 6, further comprising a portable oil wellmaintenance device comprising: a wireless module configured tocommunicate with the one or more devices and/or a signal transmitter;and a calibration module configured to calibrate the one or more devicesand/or the signal transmitter.
 8. A method for managing an oilfieldusing the oil management system of claim 1, comprising: measuringworking conditions of the one or more oil wells with the one or moredevices, wherein the working conditions of oil wells at least comprisean indicator diagram of an oil well; receiving the measured workingconditions of the one or more oil wells and forwarding the measuredworking conditions to the wireless base station via the one or moreremote transmission units; transmitting the working conditions of theone or more oil wells to the server via the wireless base station;determining status of the one or more oil wells according to the workingconditions of the one or more oil wells; and managing the one or moreoil wells according to the status of the one or more oil wells.
 9. Themethod according to claim 8, further comprising detecting ON/OFF statusof the one or more oil wells.
 10. The method according to claim 8,further comprising determining status of the one or more oil wellsaccording to comparison with a historical indicator diagram and/or astandard indicator diagram of the one or more oil wells, and producingan alarm and/or maintenance suggestion.
 11. The method according toclaim 8, further comprising executing an administration command from theserver or an administrator.
 12. The method according to claim 8, furthercomprising calibrating the one or more devices by a portable oil wellmaintenance device via wireless means.
 13. The method according to claim12, further comprising elevating alarm level and/or informingadministrators when the alarm and/or maintenance suggestion are nothandled in a timely manner.
 14. The method according to claim 12,further comprising predicting a component where a malfunction mightoccur in an oil well within the one or more oil well, and predicting thetime when the malfunction occurs; or determining a possible cause for amalfunction in an oil well within the one or more oil wells, anddetermining the time when the malfunction occurs.